Eritrea Military Assaults Ethiopia

On the front line of war, a family loses its home, bodies lie bloating in the sun, tons of grain are black and smoldering from fire, wounded cram a hospital, and suddenly a bright future has turned to dread. "War is not the World Cup--there are no winners," observed Mesfin Haileselasse, a young man recently hired to manage the nightclub in a tourist hotel here. He fears that he will have no customers now--no one in northern Ethiopia feels like dancing.

Hopes of an imminent end to the ruinous war between two of Africa's poorest countries faded Saturday, as Eritrea accused Ethiopian forces of attacking military outposts near its main Red Sea port. The allegations of renewed fighting came three days after Ethiopia declared the war against its rival over and amid reports that Eritrea's humanitarian crisis was deepening.

Eritrean and Ethiopian troops clashed along their disputed border Saturday, with each side accusing the other of instigating the latest round of fighting. Ethiopia said late Saturday that its army had inflicted "heavy losses" at Badme and had seized the Eritrean military outpost at nearby Geza Gerlase. But in a statement faxed to news agencies, the Eritrean government claimed to have routed Ethiopian troops attacking on the Mereb-Serit front, 60 miles southwest of Asmara, the Eritrean capital.

As the pounding of shells echoed from beyond nearby mountain ranges and smoke issued from above, a stream of humanity flowed Saturday along the asphalt road out of this rocky hillside town and north toward the nation's capital, Asmara. Old men, women and children carrying bundles of their meager belongings tied in cloths across their backs trudged limply along in the sweltering heat, as truckloads of Eritrean troops rumbled by them toward the direction of the booming mortars.

With air raids halted and ground fighting evidently stalemated, U.S. diplomats have decided to take another stab at persuading Eritrea and Ethiopia to end their heated border war and embrace a U.S.-Rwandan plan to settle differences by arbitration. A group of U.S. diplomats was en route to this Ethiopian capital on Wednesday "to see if they can pry things off dead center," said a diplomatic source. They might later travel to Asmara, the Eritrean capital, one official said.

Eritrean and Ethiopian troops pummeled each other with shell and rocket fire along their disputed border Tuesday, while diplomats and hundreds of frightened foreigners fled the Eritrean capital. Advancing up a steep mountain along their shared border, the Eritrean army pushed between five and eight miles into Ethiopian territory. Dozens of Eritrean troops were wounded in fierce fighting. It was not immediately clear how many casualties the Ethiopian side suffered.

Eritrea said Saturday that it will accept an African-sponsored proposal to end its border dispute with Ethiopia, a major reversal attributed to setbacks Eritrea suffered at its most fortified front. Diplomats said Eritrea's unexpected acceptance of the Organization of African Unity border plan was a welcome step and followed Eritrea's admission Friday that Ethiopian troops had punched through a key front line at Badme. U.N.

Eritrea and Ethiopia reported that heavy fighting had broken out on their disputed border, with each side accusing the other of firing the first shot. The battle marked the end of a short lull in their yearlong conflict. Spokesmen for the two nations agreed that the fighting occurred near the disputed central Badme region, where the war first broke out in May 1998. Fighting on three fronts along the 600-mile frontier has continued intermittently since, killing tens of thousands of soldiers.

Ethiopian soldiers killed, wounded or captured 7,800 Eritrean troops in three days of renewed fighting along their disputed border, a government spokeswoman said. Selome Tadesse did not give a breakdown of Eritrean casualties, saying only that Eritrean forces had launched an all-out war to seize Badme in Ethiopia's northwest. Ethiopia lost the border post to its northern neighbor in May 1998 but recaptured it in February.

Ethiopia and Eritrea each reported inflicting heavy losses on the other as battles raged for a third day in a new round of their border war. Ignoring international pleas for restraint, the two former allies pounded each other with heavy artillery and aerial attacks while their troops battled for control of disputed border territories. Military analysts say the fighting resembles battles in World War I, when waves of soldiers poured out of trenches and into enemy fire.

A day after capturing a strategic border town, Ethiopian forces Friday penetrated deeper into Eritrea and announced the capture of three more locations. Eritrean officials said the offensive proves that their southern neighbor was not committed to settling the two-year war between the African nations, but instead was intent on seizing this Eritrean capital. The continued fighting "proves that the border issue was never their agenda," said Yemane Gebremeskel, an Eritrean presidential advisor.

This ancient African nation, poor but fiercely proud of its record in defeating foreign invaders, erupted in clamorous thanksgiving Thursday at news that its latest foe, Eritrea, was withdrawing from disputed lands occupied for two years. "Whoever our enemy is, Ethiopia always wins," said a jubilant Mikhal Negas, a 32-year-old communications technician, as tens of thousands gathered here in the capital. "Ethiopia is truly a lion!"

Ethiopia and Eritrea each reported inflicting heavy losses on the other as battles raged for a third day in a new round of their border war. Ignoring international pleas for restraint, the two former allies pounded each other with heavy artillery and aerial attacks while their troops battled for control of disputed border territories. Military analysts say the fighting resembles battles in World War I, when waves of soldiers poured out of trenches and into enemy fire.

Eritrea and Ethiopia reported that heavy fighting had broken out on their disputed border, with each side accusing the other of firing the first shot. The battle marked the end of a short lull in their yearlong conflict. Spokesmen for the two nations agreed that the fighting occurred near the disputed central Badme region, where the war first broke out in May 1998. Fighting on three fronts along the 600-mile frontier has continued intermittently since, killing tens of thousands of soldiers.

Eritrea said Saturday that it will accept an African-sponsored proposal to end its border dispute with Ethiopia, a major reversal attributed to setbacks Eritrea suffered at its most fortified front. Diplomats said Eritrea's unexpected acceptance of the Organization of African Unity border plan was a welcome step and followed Eritrea's admission Friday that Ethiopian troops had punched through a key front line at Badme. U.N.

A European Union delegation left Asmara, the Eritrean capital, empty-handed after failing to mediate a cease-fire deal between Eritrea and Ethiopia, diplomats said. Delegation members said the talks had been useful, but diplomats based in Asmara and the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, dismissed the visit and said it had achieved little. "It was a waste of time and money. It didn't work before. What makes them think it will work this time?

This ancient African nation, poor but fiercely proud of its record in defeating foreign invaders, erupted in clamorous thanksgiving Thursday at news that its latest foe, Eritrea, was withdrawing from disputed lands occupied for two years. "Whoever our enemy is, Ethiopia always wins," said a jubilant Mikhal Negas, a 32-year-old communications technician, as tens of thousands gathered here in the capital. "Ethiopia is truly a lion!"

Another surge in fighting on the Ethiopian-Eritrean border was feared after the latest mediation attempt in the Horn of Africa dispute broke down, diplomats said Saturday. A peace effort by African leaders promoting a U.S.-Rwandan initiative ended in deadlock Friday after Eritrea rejected the plan. Objections to the four-point peace plan centered on its recommendation that Eritrea withdraw unconditionally from contested border areas.

Eritrean and Ethiopian troops clashed along their disputed border Saturday, with each side accusing the other of instigating the latest round of fighting. Ethiopia said late Saturday that its army had inflicted "heavy losses" at Badme and had seized the Eritrean military outpost at nearby Geza Gerlase. But in a statement faxed to news agencies, the Eritrean government claimed to have routed Ethiopian troops attacking on the Mereb-Serit front, 60 miles southwest of Asmara, the Eritrean capital.